Azure Akuma [Fire Force x M!Reader] REWRITING IN PROGRESS

«|| 09. Secrets Uncovered

"My little brother Sho is still... alive?" Shinra repeated though the question seemed like it was aimed more at himself rather than the eyepatch-ed man. Curious, you taste the name on your tongue, letting it bounce around in your head. The name was oddly familiar, but you couldn't pinpoint why. Rapidly blinking, you rid yourself of the random thought and scanned Shinra's face for any emotion, only to see none.

The man watched the boy with a grin, the smoke from his cigarette oozing out lazily. Then, Shinra snapped, his once lifeless face wrinkling in anger. "Shut up, shut up! What are you going on about? Sho died without leaving so much as a bone behind! Plus, if he were alive, tell me where he went from that fire incident! He was just a 1-year-old baby, for fucks sake!" The man then let out a harsh laugh, the pressure on your spine easing ever so slightly.

"Sounds like someone's been feeding you lies, don't you think?"

He's hinting at something, isn't he, you thought. Shinra said there wasn't even a bone left behind, but that should be physically impossible. There had to be some ashes left behind, even if it is a negligible amount, but then again, infernals could very well make it so that nothing was left behind. You were positive you had no idea how internals functioned. You laid limp for a moment, mulling over what Shinra had said, but you didn't notice the man's lingering gaze on you as you did so.

You sighed, this you would have to think about another time. Gripping the man's ankle, you willed the flames to ignite in your palm. Blue flames are supposedly hotter than orange flames, so he should be able to feel it, no matter his generation. Hastily, you tightened your grip on his ankle, and you could see a slight wince on his features. There was no doubt that it was going to leave a scalding mark. Grinning to yourself, you brought all of your strength and yanked his foot from your back, making the man stumble wildly.

Taking your place next to Shinra, you waited for the man's motives to be made known of, the fire from your palms and feet dying down. In turn, Shinra's flames began to spur from his feet, and his grin grew more prominent. "As if I could believe something as crazy as that!" The boy stood still for a moment, apprehension clear on his vision, completely contradicting what he said.
The fedora-wearing man also noticed this and tilted his head. "How about it, then? Something just popped into that head of yours?" Shinra glared.

"I hope you don't mind me butting in," You started. "But if what you're saying were true, how could you possibly have known about this? And why are you telling us; what could you possibly gain from this?" The man only smirked, and you fought the urge to wipe the stupid leer off of his face.

"Taking an interest in me, are we? It looks like you do have some potential after all~."

"Just answer the damn question!" Shinra barked, and the man's smile dropped.

"Judging from your reaction, It's safe to say something did pop into that head of yours... could it be that you had some doubts bout the Special Fire Brigades, to begin with?

Your mother died; that's no laughing matter. You want to get to the bottom of things, don't you? And this goes for you too, Mr. Azure Akuma. If that's the case, why don't you give up on playing heroes with the Special Fire Brigade and instead become devils with me... to uncover the truths you oh so desperately seek for?" He opened his palms, the fire from his cigarette forming the words "Hero or Devil."

This time, it was you who let out a sharp laugh. "Cracking jokes are we now? What makes you think we'd side with a shady man like yourself? The fact that you assaulted two fire soldiers gives me more reasons not to go with you." Your tail whipped wildly behind you, flashes of blue glowing brightly against the walls.

"Ah, it seems my expectations were misplaced." The man frowned, and as soon as the words left his mouth, Shinra shot forward and sent a kick in the man's direction. The older male out of you three only blocked the kick with his hand, though it should've blown him back at least a little bit.